TROUBLE
by dinosoprano
Summary: One day in September four boys meet. One wants a normal life for once. One wants to be around people his own age. One wants to excape his family. One wants to blend in, yet stand out. Everyone's favorite trouble-makers story is finally revealed.
1. Living in a Nightmare

**Author's Note: I do not own Harry Potter, much to my disappointment. The Marauders are one of my favorite groups in the Harry Potter series so I just had to write about them. Remus is my favorite, so he will be the main point of view, but the others will have their time to shine. Enjoy! Please review!**

Chapter 1: Nightmares Come True

"Daddy, can I come pick up Romilda with you?" a little boy asked running after his father who was putting his traveling cloak on. His father laughed.

"What kind of father would I be not to allow a little boy to help pick up his sister from school? Put your shoes on Remus and you can come," Remus looked at his bare feet.

"You lost your shoes, didn't you?" John sighed.

"I don't like shoes, Daddy," Remus whined.

"Remus, if you don't keep your shoes where you can find them, I'm going to jinx them to your feet and they will never come off again," John said sternly. Remus's jaw dropped. He dashed off. A woman walked into the hall drying off a plate. She glared at her husband.

"Don't you dare jinx his shoes to his feet, John Lupin," Emma said sternly.

"Emma, dear, you know I would never do that, but he doesn't. I'm just trying to teach him. Whatever works, I say. It worked with Romilda."

"Look, they were in my closet right where I left them!" Remus said proudly showing his parents his be-shoed feet.

"Very good sweetheart, now hurry, the train's almost here," Emma said going back into the kitchen.

"We gotta hurry, Daddy, or we'll miss Mildy!" Remus shouted pulling on his father's sleeve.

"Remus, she can't go anywhere without us. She's under age, she can't do magic, she'd have to take a taxi," John said picking up his small son.

"Mildy hates taxis." Remus said making a face.

"Exactly, that's why she'll be there," John said. He opened the front door and went out the front gate before spinning on the spot and vanishing. The two reappeared on a platform where a big red steam engine had just pulled in and was being emptied of its occupants. Remus stretched his neck to see over all the grown-ups trying to find his sister.

"She's over there!" Remus shouted as his sister, her best friend and her boyfriend got off the train. Remus struggled out of his father's arms and off down the platform to his big sister. She was laughing at something Arita said when he finally reached them.

"Mildy!" Remus shouted. Romilda turned around and smiled. She bent down and picked up her little brother in a big hug.

"How are you? You are so big I can hardly pick you up anymore!" Romilda exclaimed.

"I grew three inches!" Remus said proudly.

"Aren't you the cutest thing ever?" Arita giggled. "How old are you?"

"Six!" Remus said excitedly.

"That's right; your sister told us that on your birthday," Thorfin said.

"What an adorable little boy. Too bad he's related to that thing. He has no chance then," a haughty girl sneered at Romilda and Remus. Remus didn't know who she was, but he didn't like her. She was scary-looking.

"Shut your big mouth Black. I could say the same thing about your poor little sisters," Romilda snarled, putting Remus down.

"There is nothing wrong with my sisters," Black said angrily.

"What about the one who hangs out with Mudbloods?" Romilda asked. Remus stared at his sister in shock. She had just used a bad word. Daddy had told them to never use it.

"That's rich coming from a filthy half-blood such as yourself," the haughty girl growled.

"I'm cleaner than Tonks," Romilda pointed out.

"Like it matters, it's just a fling…a phase if you will. She'll be over him soon enough. Then Tonks and your filthy mother will be taken care of. A new regime is starting and Muggles and Mudbloods won't stand a chance," the girl hissed before she stalked off to join her equally creepy family.

"What a bitch," Arita said.

"Ari, not with Remus around!" Romilda scolded her friend.

"Sorry," Arita muttered.

"Mildy, you said a bad word too, though," Remus said quietly. Romilda looked seriously at her brother.

"Remus, you must understand that I have to talk like that around members of my House. If I didn't, I'd be eaten alive," she whispered to her brother. Remus stared at her. She had changed. He wasn't sure he liked the change. He backed away from her and ran back to his father. He could hear his sister calling after him but he didn't care. He was too frightened to care.

"Where's Romilda?" John asked.

"Saying good-bye to her friends," Remus mumbled. John looked at his son curiously.

"Remus, what happened?" John asked softly.

"Romilda said the M-word," Remus whispered. "She said she had to."

John did not look pleased. He said nothing as he stood and left Remus by the wall to fetch his wayward daughter. Remus knew he'd gotten her in trouble, but he hoped she wouldn't be too mad. He was only looking out for her.

"Daddy, stop this!" Romilda shouted. John was levitating her trunk ahead of him and he held his daughter in a vice-like grip.

"Come on Remus, we're going home now," John said holding out his free hand for the boy. Remus grabbed his dad's hand as Romilda's trunk vanished. He spun on the spot and they were home. Romilda's trunk sat on the front porch.

"Remus, tell your mother to come fetch the trunk, will you? Romilda and I need to talk," John led Romilda away from the house, most likely toward the pond that the four mansions shared. Remus dashed inside and told his mother to get the trunk. Then he kicked off his shoes, whistled for his puppy, Thor, and ran out the back door. He laughed as he and Thor ran through the tall grass toward his friend, Ricky's house. Ricky was a wizard too. His family, Remus's and the other two were all wizarding families that worked for the same company.

Remus walked up to Ricky's front door and rang the bell. Ricky's mother, Ellen, opened the door. She smiled.

"Ricky, Remus is here to play!" she called. "Come in, it'll be a moment before Ricky comes down. He's still trying to get that bird to talk," Ellen shook her head and went into the kitchen. Remus stood in the open foyer waiting. He and Ricky were the best of friends. They even went to work with their dad's on the same day because their dad's worked in the same department.

Both Mr. Lupin and Mr. Patil worked for Willie's, a large company that supplied most other companies their products. They worked specifically in the jewelry department. Making sure they were getting the real deal and not fake jewels or gold and so on.

Willie Anderson, the owner of the company, lived on the other side of Ricky and also had the biggest house in the area. Nelson, his older son at twelve thought he knew everything simply because he had gone to Hogwarts for two years. He bossed all the younger kids around, except Remus because he was afraid of Romilda. Nelson's little brother, Kelvin, was a year older than Remus, but he was a cry baby. If he didn't get his way he went to Mummy and Daddy and made things go his way. Remus didn't like him.

On the other side of the Anderson's lived the Albertson's. Mr. Albertson worked in the clothing department. He had only one eye, but no one knew why. Ricky had once said that an angry client had his owl peck it out. Remus highly doubted that. Mr. Albertson had three sons. One was fifteen and Remus hardly ever saw him. He didn't even know his name. He never came out and his brothers never spoke of him. Remus had asked Romilda about him once. Romilda said she had seen him once when she was about Remus's age and that he was trying desperately to make a stick move by magic. She hadn't seen him get Sorted at school, so she deduced that he was a Squib. Remus felt sorry for him. He couldn't imagine not getting a Hogwarts letter. That was any wizarding child's worst fear: that the letter would never come.

Remus did play with the two younger boys though. Nader was eight and full of adventures. He liked pretending they were going to far off lands and fighting off dragons and werewolves and vampires. Gregor was not like Nader. He was only three, and he was very shy. Remus tried to help him, but he didn't have much patience so more than likely he just gave up.

Ricky was the one he spent most of his time with though. Ricky was his own age. The two got on a lot better than any of the others. Both liked animals and both had a Muggle relative or two that they lived with. Ricky had a cousin who was staying with him until she could get a job in town. She had quite the shock when she found out her family were wizards and their neighbors were too.

"Okay, what are we doing today?" Ricky asked running down the stairs. Remus shrugged.

"We could train Thor," Remus suggested.

"We could…or we could go swimming in the pond," Ricky said slyly.

"Can't, Dad's yelling at Romilda down there," Remus sighed. Ricky frowned.

"She's in trouble again?" he asked. "Does she ever not get in trouble?"

Remus shrugged. "I suppose it was my fault, but who knows."

"Let's go play in my new tree house!" Ricky shouted suddenly.

"You have a tree house?" Remus asked.

"Dad and I built it while you were at the train station. It didn't take long with magic. Erica was thrilled," Erica was his cousin. Ricky often thought his cousin found the strangest things were cool.

"Okay, sounds fun," Remus agreed.

"Come in," John said when he heard a knock on his office door. The door opened and a filthy man entered. He looked like he hadn't had a proper bath in years. His nails were yellow and sharp; his teeth were yellow and cracked…even his skin seemed a bit yellow. John set down his pen looking at the man suspiciously. The man shut the door behind him and locked it. John reached for his wand.

"No need for that Mr. Lupin," the man said. "I just wanted to ensure our privacy. You see, you've been quite a nuisance the past couple of weeks."

"I don't even know you," John said. The man leered.

"Oh I think you do…and I know you. You may work for this company but I know you also work for a group who believes the Ministry isn't taking the group known as the Knights of Walpurgis seriously enough. I believe Dumbledore started the group. What is it called? Oh yes, the Order of the Phoenix."

John's eyes widened. "I don't know what you're talking about. I've never heard of this Order."

The laughed in a raspy voice. "Don't lie to me. You and a woman named Dorcas Meadows have been hunting down members of my pack for weeks."

John felt himself pale. "You're a…"

"A werewolf, yes very good Mr. Lupin," the man said sarcastically. "My name is Fenrir Greyback. Ah, so you've heard of me."

John was on his feet, his wand in hand. Greyback laughed again.

"I'm giving you one chance: leave my pack alone. You do this and I won't kill you."

"I'd like to see you try," John spat.

"Be careful where you tread, Lupin," Greyback said picking up one of the photos sitting on John's desk. "You may be willing to give your life but I may just target your little family."

"You should leave before I call security."

Greyback set the picture down but didn't leave.

"I'm warning you, we have very skilled security wizards on the premises…"

"I'm sure you do but that doesn't change my request. Leave my pack alone."

"Only if your pack leaves innocent people alone and somehow I don't think that's going to happen. Dangerous half-breeds need to be controlled."

"I'm afraid you have crossed a very dangerous line, Mr. Lupin," Greyback whispered clearly angered from the last statement.

"I beg your pardon?" John asked incredulously. Greyback picked up a photo of John's kids from the desk.

"What a sweet girl…and such a precious little boy, you wouldn't want to see them get hurt, would you?" Greyback asked. John snatched the photo away and placed it back where it belonged. He hit a button on his desk.

"Security to the second floor. We have a half-breed up here attempting a business scam and threatening the life of an employee," John spoke sharply.

"Coming," came a voice. Greyback laughed.

"You've been warned Lupin. I've taken a liking to that little boy. I'd keep him inside from now on…" he headed for the door. "…or you may find a monster under your roof."

"Okay, behave you two. I don't want to come back and find my office in shambles," Mr. Patil said. Ricky and Remus nodded enthusiastically. They were playing with their stuffed animals under the lunch table in Mr. Patil's office at work. Remus had a Chinese Fireball and a hippogriff in his hands. Ricky had a unicorn and a griffin. The two were making quite a lot of noise and Mr. Patil had finally had enough. He had decided to go and get the boys some food so that maybe he could have some peace and quiet.

Mr. Patil walked down the hall only to stop at the sound of shouting. It was coming from Mr. Lupin's room. Mr. Patil was about to go past when the door opened and a very filthy man was thrown bodily out of Lupin's office.

"I told you already. We don't do business with people like you. I don't know why you keep coming to me, but this is the last time I'm telling you to leave. Next time it'll be Azkaban!" John shouted. The man stood and looked Lupin straight in the eye.

"You must really hate your children, Mr. Lupin. I've given you several chances to do what I ask, but still you refuse. Consider yourself an outsider in society," The man walked past Patil and trudged down the hall and around the corner.

"Stay the hell away from my family you bastard!" John called after the man. He was breathing heavily when he realized that Devin was there. "Sorry you had to hear that," he apologized.

"That's the werewolf that keeps giving you problems, isn't it?" Devin asked.

"Yes, and he's becoming a real nuisance. He seems to think I'm part of some secret group hunting werewolves and then he tells me that his boss wants to know my stand on Muggles and Muggle-borns as if that has anything to do with anything! Now he's threatening my children because I'm pro-Muggle," John said in exasperation.

"He has no right to do that. You should take it to the Ministry. He's breaking the law just being here…" he stopped, his face showing his dawning horror.

"Devin?" John asked in concern.

"The children…I brought them with me and he just went past my…"

John didn't even wait. He dashed off.

"Well, what sweet little children."

Remus and Ricky looked up. There was an ugly, dirty man standing in the doorway wearing what he must have thought was a friendly smile that looked more like a grimace.

"Who are you?" Ricky asked suspiciously.

"No, Ricky, we're not supposed to talk to strangers!" Remus said quickly. Ricky ignored his friend.

"I'm Fen, just Fen. Do your daddies work here?" he asked. Remus said nothing. He didn't like this man. He didn't like him at all. Ricky didn't seem to feel as frightened.

"Yes, both of our daddies work here. Mine works here and Remus's daddy works down the hall," he said. The man smiled in a way that made the hairs on Remus's neck stand up.

"Are you Mr. Lupin's son?" he asked with an unmistakable leer. Ricky must have been really dense, because he continued to talk.

"Yes, he is Mr. Lupin's son. His only son."

Remus shirked away as the man looked hungrily at him. The corners of his mouth were watering. Remus stood up.

"I think I hear my daddy calling me," he said dashing out of the room. He ran down the hall in a blind panic until he came in contact with something rather hard.

"Remus, are you okay?" John asked. His son said nothing, he just clung to him. Devin ran past him and into his office.

"He's not here," Devin said. John glared. He looked down at Remus.

"Son, did a man come and talk to you?" he asked gently. Remus nodded. John noticed that Remus was crying.

"Did you talk to him? Tell him anything like your name?" John asked. Remus shook his head.

"But he did," Remus pointed at Ricky. Ricky looked at his dad. Devin looked angry.

"Richard Charles Patil, what did I tell you about talking to strangers? You are going home and you are not to leave your room for anything but the bathroom and meals, understand?" Devin asked. Ricky nodded glumly.

"Come on Remus, let's go home," John said picking up Remus and Flooing home.

Remus ate the last piece of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich and began to lick the peanut butter off his pudgy fingers. Romilda took his plate and stuck it in the sink. She kept looking out the window as if waiting for something.

"Romilda, your father and I are going to the market. Can you handle Remus?" Emma asked as she checked her purse for her wallet.

"I would think so, he's only six," Romilda said a bit miffed. Emma looked curiously at her daughter.

"No friends over while we're gone, we'll be back in an hour or so," She kissed Remus and Romilda on the cheek and left the room. Once the car's engine had faded away, Romilda smiled. She got up from the windowsill and went to the back door.

"Hey stranger, sorry it took so long, I didn't think they'd ever leave," Romilda kissed Thorfin thoroughly. Remus made a face.

"Get a room," he said copying what he'd heard older kids say to each other. Romilda looked grumpily at him.

"It's time for bed, Remus," she said. Remus stared at her.

"It's not even dark! Mummy and Daddy let me stay up until it's dark!" he argued. Romilda glared at him.

"Who's in charge here? Go to bed!"

"I want to play outside!"

"BED!"

Remus glared but didn't argue anymore. He trudged angrily toward the stairs. Romilda and Thorfin passed him on their way to the sitting room where they shut the door. Remus paused. He tiptoed over to the door and cracked it a bit.

"So, I was thinking I'd sneak in later tonight and we could charm your room like we did two nights ago," he heard Thorfin say. Romilda giggled.

"They still have no idea that I'm not their innocent little girl. They are so naïve."

"Wait until they find out your plans after graduation…"

Whatever her plans were, Remus didn't hear. He was disgusted. His sister was letting that boy into her room at night? That couldn't be good. He knew his parents would be angry. He was about to go upstairs when he saw the back door was still wide open. He went to go close it, but got distracted. Thor had gotten out and bounding into the night. Knowing his dog's awful sense of direction, Remus followed him. Soon he reached the edge of the woods.

"Thor? Where are you boy?" he asked.

A bark sounded from the woods. Remus hesitated. He wasn't supposed to wander in there without his parents. On the other hand he didn't want to lose his dog. He carefully walked into the woods. The further in he went, the darker it got. He eventually made it to a clearing. Thor wasn't there. The man he had seen at his father's office was. Remus stumbled back. The man leered.

"Silly little boy, didn't your parents ever tell you it's dangerous to be out on the night of a full moon?" the man laughed. He looked up and Remus followed his gaze. The moon was coming out from behind a cloud right above them. Remus looked at the man as he continued to laugh. Remus gasped. He was changing. Fur was sprouting all over the man's body as he howled in pain. His face elongated into a snout and his hands and feet turned into paws. Remus screamed and bolted. He wasn't going to let the werewolf get him. Just as he thought he'd gotten away, he heard a series of howls. There was more than one.

Panicked, Remus hid in a deep hollow tree. There was no way he could outrun a pack of werewolves. He could hear them sniffing him out. Remus held his breath as it seemed to fade away. Just as he thought he might be safe, a snout found its way to him and growled. Remus screamed.

Romilda ripped her mouth away from Thorfin's. She sat bolt upright. Thorfin looked at her curiously.

"Did you hear that?" she asked quietly, still listening.

"Hear what, Romilda?" Thorfin asked confused.

"A scream," Romilda whispered. "I better check on my brother," she said suddenly, getting off Thorfin and putting her top back on. She was about to dash up the stairs when she saw moonlight drifting in through the open backdoor. She gasped. She ran to the door.

"Remus!" she shouted. There was no response. She grabbed her wand from the kitchen table and proceeded to leave. Thorfin grabbed her wrist.

"Where are you going? You sent him to bed," he said reasonably.

"You know as well as I do he didn't listen. He went outside, the door was wide open!" she was on the brink of hysteria. If something happened to her little brother, she'd be in so much trouble.

"He's not in trouble," Thorfin insisted.

"Why are you preventing me from helping my brother?" Romilda asked.

"Your father is a disgrace to the wizarding world. He's being punished," At that pronouncement, a vicious howl came their way followed by a terrified scream. Romilda suddenly understood. Thorfin was a distraction. Remus was a target in some dreadful scheme to get back at her father and she had fallen for the trap. She spat in Thorfin's face before struggling free and running toward the woods.

"Consider us through you jackass! You and Bellatrix will make a lovely couple!" She disappeared. Thorfin smiled cunningly. He locked the back door and shut it. He lifted up the carpet and picked up the spare key, flinging it far from the door. He chuckled and went around to the front to repeat the process before he Disapparated.

Romilda ran until she reached the clearing before the creek. There were four werewolves trying to pry open a hollow tree. She could barely make out Remus scrunched up inside looking more terrified than she had ever seen him. Romilda picked up a pebble and threw it hard at the nearest wolf. It yelped and turned around. So did the other three.

"Remus, run home and write to Mum and Dad! Stay inside, shut the door behind you!" Romilda ordered.

"What about you?" Remus asked.

"Don't worry about me! I have a wand, I'll be okay," She was lying and she hoped he didn't know that. She was never going to see her sweet, innocent little brother again.

"Remus, I want you to know that I'm sorry. I've been horrible to you ever since we got home. I hope you forgive me. I love you."

"I love you too, but why are you telling me this?" Remus asked.

"Run!" Romilda dashed away and four werewolves bounded after her. Remus was taken aback but he heeded his sister's final wishes. He made a mad dash for his house. Once he made it there, he tried frantically to open the door. It was locked. Remus bent down to look for the spare key, but it was gone. Remus froze. There was snarl and he was thrown into the back door. The fourth werewolf hadn't followed Romilda. Remus tried to get up but the werewolf pinned him down. Remus whimpered and tried to kick the wolf, but it dodged and sunk its teeth deep into his left shoulder. Remus screamed.

It was not like being bitten by Thor. This was a hundred times worse. He could feel the warm blood trickling down his arm. He could feel all of the monster's teeth sinking deep into his flesh. He could smell its rancid breath. It felt like a thousand tiny needles were injecting him with some sort of lethal disease. Then, he passed out.

"John, change the station, I don't like this song," Emma complained as another song from the Troggs came on.

"Okay…" he didn't though. He was distracted by the lights coming from their driveway. "What in the world…" He parked the car and hopped out. Emma didn't seem to realize they'd stopped. She was busy fixing her knitting. John walked up to the nearest group of people.

"What's going on here?" John asked. A tall man looked at him.

"I'm sorry, Sir. We're not at liberty to tell you. This is a crime scene," the man said importantly.

"Crime scene? This is my home! Where are my children?" John was panicking. If something had happened to them…what would Emma say?

"Are you John Lupin?" the woman in the group asked.

"Yes, where are my kids?"

"Your son is at the Patils home getting his minor injuries healed."

"Minor?" John yelped. "You mean he's been seriously hurt?"

"We're not sure, the healer wouldn't say. We have yet to find your daughter," the woman explained sympathetically.

"John, what in the world is going on?" Emma asked as she approached them.

"Mrs. Lupin?" the other man asked. He resembled a lion. Emma nodded.

"Your house was under attack. Your neighbors reported that they heard screaming and howling."

"Oh no…" John said horror dawning on him. "No, no, no, no, no…" He suddenly dashed off toward the Patils mansion. Dear Merlin, if Remus was…no, he wouldn't think like that. It wasn't as bad as he was making it out to be Remus was fine, he just had a run in with a pack of ordinary wolves. He knocked on the door. Ellen opened the door.

"John! Oh, I'm so sorry! He's in the lounge with the healer," she said quickly leading John to the lounge. When he entered, he had to stifle a gasp. His little boy was covered in blood. The healer looked up and smiled sadly.

"Are you the boy's father?" she asked softly. John nodded unable to speak. He walked over to the couch his son was laying down on. He seemed to be sleeping.

"I gave him a Sleeping Draught so that I could heal him without hurting him," the healer explained. John gently touched his son's bloodied cheek.

"Is this all his?" he whispered. The healer nodded.

"I'm sorry, but there's not much more I can do but clear the blood away. He'll have that scar the rest of his life."

John didn't know what she was talking about. Then he realized that Remus wasn't wearing a shirt. There was a horrible scar on his left shoulder that unmistakably belonged to teeth. He stifled a sob. This couldn't be happening. Remus didn't deserve this. He was much too young to bear this. Maybe he would wake up and it would all be a horrible nightmare.

"I must warn you, Sir, transformations at his age generally kill them. Their little bodies can't handle the abusive change. It might be better to put him down now," the healer said sadly. John looked at her incredulously. Remus was his son, not an animal with rabies. How dare she talk about him like that!

"Excuse me? This is a little boy we are discussing, not some animal. Would you kill your child?" John asked in a dangerous voice that frightened the healer. He ignored the fact that when he had woken up this morning he would have said the same thing.

"No, of course not, but it is not as cruel as making him go through a painful transformation once a month just to become an animal!" the healer defended herself.

"Get out. I don't want you tending to my son anymore. Leave and never come back," John demanded. The healer frowned, but said nothing as she gathered her thinks and left. Ellen entered a little later.

"You should just listen to her, John. You don't need this," she said quietly. John glared at her.

"If this were Ricky, would you kill him?" he asked.

"If it meant he wouldn't have to suffer and be shunned by society, yes," Ellen said. John frowned. He gently picked up his son and left without another word. He was able to get into his house without much difficulty. He put Remus on the sofa and went back outside just as a young auror appeared carrying something small in his hand.

"Mr. Scrimgeour, we found something," he said holding out the item to the lion man. Scrimgeour looked at John.

"Does this look familiar?" he asked handing a necklace to him. John's lip trembled. It was the necklace that he and Emma hadn't gotten Romilda for Christmas the year before.

"It's Romilda's," he finally managed. The young auror suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"Well?" Scrimgeour asked impatiently. "Where did you find it?"

"By the lake, Sir. With a pile of…" he trailed off looking at John. The world seemed to fall apart. It went completely black. All his nightmares were coming true.


	2. Changes

**Author's Note: I do not own Harry Potter, much to my disappointment. The Marauders are one of my favorite groups in the Harry Potter series so I just had to write about them. Remus is my favorite, so he will be the main point of view, but the others will have their time to shine. Enjoy! Please review!**

Chapter 2

John sat in the living room staring at the stack of papers in front of him. Tears rolled down his cheeks. He couldn't believe this was happening. He had never imagined things could get this bad. Remus had suffered enough this month, must she do this to him? John didn't know what to do. His life was crumbling around him.

"Daddy?" Remus asked in a raspy voice. John looked up, startled. "Are you crying?" he asked. John wiped his eyes.

"Remus, you should be in bed. You heard Healer Martin. You shouldn't leave your bed for a few days."

"I was hungry, Daddy. Why are you crying?" Remus asked as John picked him up.

"Daddy's just a little sad right now. Don't worry, I'll be okay," _I hope_ he thought. He put Remus back on his bed and tucked him in. "What would you like to eat?"

"I want a corndog!" Remus said excitedly.

"Okay," John smiled as he left. Once he was out of sight of the room, the smile faded fast. How was he going to explain to Remus that his mother wouldn't be coming home because she was sick of getting her hopes crushed every time a therapy failed? How could explain that she couldn't stand having a son who was, for all intensive purposes, not human anymore? How could he explain the divorce? He sighed, running a hand through his hair. This wasn't fair. If there was ever a time when a child needed both of their parents, it was now.

The doorbell rang. John rolled his eyes. He wasn't in the mood. He opened the front door cautiously. There was a man in a long overcoat and holding an umbrella as it was raining.

"Mr. Lupin, I am Emma's lawyer, Frances Marks. I've come to pick up the divorce papers," the man introduced himself hastily.

"I haven't signed the papers," John said intending to shut the door. Frances had other ideas. He jammed his foot between the door and the frame.

"I'm sorry Mr. Lupin, I think you misunderstood me. I've come to pick up the divorce papers _today_."

"No, I don't think I did. Last time I checked, both partners had to agree to the divorce. I don't, so therefore, I don't have to sign the papers," John said angrily.

"We will win, John, do not mistaken us for the Ministry of Magic. We are much more competent," Frances warned.

"I don't have time to waste money on a pointless divorce when I could be using it to help my sick son," John growled.

"Sick son? He's an animal, there is no…" John whipped out his wand and sent Frances flying across the lawn.

"Don't come back! I'll send them when I'm damn good and ready," He slammed the door shut and proceeded to make Remus his corndog. No one insulted his son in front of him. He had become extremely protective of him in the past few days since the attack. He couldn't lose both his children.

"Who were you yelling at?" Remus asked when John had returned with the corndog.

"No one," John said evasively, leaving as soon as he could. He didn't think he could hold it together much longer. He went back to the living room and began staring at the papers again. He couldn't do it; he just couldn't sign those papers. He loved Emma and so did Remus and she loved them through all her anger and insecurity. She had to have known what she was getting into being involved with a wizard. She had claimed she didn't care.

The tears returned. She had lied to him, to Remus. She didn't care that she was destroying their lives as long as she got the divorce. He loved her, so he was going to let her have it her way. He took his quill in his shaking right hand and dipped it into the inkwell. He clumsily signed his name on the parchment. Tears fell steadily onto it, wrinkling the parchment. Once he was done, he folded up the papers and tied them to his owl, Heinrich. When the owl had vanished, John completely broke down. He had lost her, the one thing that had been a constant in his life since he was fifteen. The angel he had seen working at a local grocery store one hot summer's day had turned into a demon overnight.

The doorbell rang again. John nearly screamed in frustration. He got up, cleared his red face with his wand and went to answer the door. It was Willie Anderson and he didn't look pleased.

"Er, hello, did I read the schedule wrong? I thought I had today off," John said confused.

"No, you didn't. I was just informed that your son was recently bitten by a werewolf. Am I correct?" Willie asked.

"Yes, I don't understand…"

"John, our company policy states that we do not give services to half-breeds," Willie said.

"I know, what does…"

"Paying you is giving services to a half-breed indirectly," Willie informed. John's jaw fell open.

"Are you saying…?"

"I'm sorry John, but I'm going to have to let you go," Willie said without any sympathy.

"But, I need this job. I can't pay for his medication otherwise. I've been one of your best employees…" John pleaded.

"John, I can't go against company policy…"

"You own the damn company! You made those policies!" John shouted.

"Exactly, and I have them for a reason, John. I don't want to fraternize with the wrong people…"

"He's a child! He can hardly tie his own shoes!" John said in exasperation.

"It doesn't matter! I want you out of this house by this time tomorrow, understood?" Willie marched off as John gaped after him. Could things get any worse?

"But why do we have to leave?" Remus asked as his father packed his thinks in a trunk.

"Because, we can't live here anymore. It's a company house, Mr. Anderson owns it," John tried to explain.

"But, he's always been nice to us. Why would he want us to leave?" Remus asked.

"Remus, I can't tell you. You aren't old enough to understand yet," John said losing his patience. Remus fell silent. John glanced up and saw that he had hurt him. He sighed.

"Remus, so, I'm sorry, it's just really hard. Daddy lost his job so we can't stay here," John explained.

"It's because of me, isn't it?" Remus asked. "That's why I couldn't play with Ricky too."

John saw the pained expression on his son's face. It was an expression that a six year old shouldn't have had to wear. This wasn't fair. John sighed. He thought that thought too much these days. He sighed too much these days.

"Look, we're moving into a little house in country just like this one. We'll be just as happy there as here," John said kissing Remus's forehead.

"But, will I have friends there? Mummies and Daddies don't like me anymore," he mumbled.

"They won't know what you are and we aren't going to tell them," John said decisively.

"But, we can't hide it forever," Remus said.

"No, but we can try," John said.

A white lab barked madly as it chased a stick. They were in a small yard surrounded by a red brick wall. A window above the boy and his dog opened and a grouchy old man stuck his head out.

"You! Keep it down!" he shouted irritably. "I need my rest!"

Remus looked up. "Sorry Mr. Robetussen," he apologized. The man grumbled and slammed his window shut. Remus rolled his eyes. He hated Mr. Robetussen because Mr. Robetussen hated kids. Not that Remus had much choice. His father had jumped from job to job, so they moved all the time. Remus usually didn't even bother to unpack. He had been dealing with this for three years now.

Thor brought the stick back to Remus and sat waiting expectantly. Remus took the stick but didn't throw it.

"Sorry, Thor, but we have to stop. Maybe when Dad gets home we can go play at the park," He put the stick down and led Thor into the basement of the duplex that they lived in. Remus flung himself onto the couch and immediately regretted it. The full moon had been two nights ago and he had seriously injured his back. He sat up gingerly and rubbed the sore spot. It was wet. Remus groaned. He'd opened it again. His father wouldn't be happy.

Remus ripped his shirt off. The blood stained only a small portion of the back. It should come out. He walked to the bathroom and turned the bathtub faucet on. He filled the tub with a centimeter of cold water placed his bloody shirt in there to soak. He got up and hopped on his step stool to look at the scar on his back. He hadn't done too much damage. It looked worse than it felt anyway. He sighed and fetched a wash cloth out of the pantry and wet it. Then he washed the blood away. It stung like nobody's business but he didn't have to do it for long. He put the wash cloth in the hamper and went in search of a bandage. He found one and attempted to put it on straight.

He was used to this by now, taking care of himself. His father wasn't around enough anymore to do it for him. He only stayed right after the full moon. Remus shuddered. He still remembered the first full moon. It was agony. He hadn't realized what it had meant then. He hadn't realized that he would literally change into something else entirely. He hated that his memory went completely blank. He hated that he didn't know what he was doing and that he hurt himself. He hated not knowing if his father really was safe on the other side of the metal door.

John had made a metal, well, box, for Remus to change in. It was silver so he couldn't break out. Silver wasn't dangerous to werewolves, that was a myth. In reality, it was more like a severe allergy…if ingested or brought into the body somehow (like a bullet). Silver was also the only product they couldn't penetrate. Remus had hurt himself mostly on that, but it was better than breaking out and biting someone. Remus would never forgive himself if he did that. His father worked too hard to keep him from being "put down."

"Remus?" Remus broke out of his reverie. His dad shouldn't be home yet. That meant only one thing. His boss had found out about the lycanthropy. Remus sighed.

"I'm in my room!" he called. He picked up a random shirt and threw it on. His dad opened the door and smiled wearily.

"Your dog was begging. I think he ran out of food," John said getting ready to leave again.

"Oh, ok," Remus said. "Dad?" John came back in.

"Yes?"

"Are we going to move again?"

John sighed. "I'm sorry Remus."

"Don't be, it's not your fault."

"No, and it's not your fault either," John said quickly.

"Dad…"

"No, Remus. We agreed years ago that my job problems were not because of you. Let's keep that promise."

Remus looked down in defeat. Who was his father kidding? There was no way this wasn't because of his lycanthropic son.

"Okay," he agreed grudgingly.

"Are you hungry?" John asked.

"A little," Remus admitted. There wasn't much around the duplex.

"Okay, I'll make some chicken casserole."

Remus smiled. Chicken casserole was his favorite. They had so little food at one point that John had thrown together random ingredients. He put Ramen noodle into a casserole dish with the seasoning, Cream of Mushroom soup, and bread crumbs on top. It was the best thing Remus had had in a long time. He had to give his dad credit; he wasn't the best cook, but he was a chicken casserole chef.

Remus hurried off to feed Thor while his dad started dinner. Remus didn't have any friends; there weren't any kids in this part of town. Not that he had many friends when there were kids around. They just didn't trust the quiet boy that played by himself. Not that Remus minded all that much. After all, what was the chance they'd meet again? Close to none. Unlike all the other kids, Remus wouldn't be attending school. Werewolves weren't allowed, it just wasn't safe. Remus had gotten used to the idea. His dad taught him everything he knew, even some magic. Even if he didn't go to Hogwarts, his dad could home teach him. Remus could still have a wand, though he would be regulated, but he would be able to perform magic.

As much as he liked the idea of still being able to do magic, Remus still wasn't happy. He wanted friends. Ricky had been his best friend, but after the attack, he hadn't been allowed to play with Remus. In fact, he went as far as to call him a filthy half-breed simply because his parents did. When the Lupins had moved to the little house in the country, he had met a boy named Mario, but he didn't last long because his dad got a transfer to Greece. When they had lived in the apartment in London, there had been a boy who lived down the street that he'd only talked to once at the park. He seemed friendly enough but his mother was scary. He hadn't wanted to be around them more than necessary. Now, in this ridiculous duplex (every time one of their landlords discovered Remus, they were thrown out) he had no one. Thor was his only playmate.

Remus didn't mind so much being alone, he was used to it since his dad worked all day, but he wished that his mother had stayed. For he now knew why his mother wasn't around. She had divorced his dad because her only daughter was murdered and her only son was a monster. She hadn't even known werewolves existed and she was angry that her husband hadn't bothered to tell her. She couldn't handle the situation. Sometimes Remus was angry that she had left. Why hadn't she just dealt with it and taken care of him? Why did she have to be a coward and run away? Then, he would feel bad about being angry and think that she probably didn't want to leave, she just didn't know what else to do.

A week passed and the Lupins were once again in a little cottage far from other dwellings. The cottage was made of stone and it stood next to a small wood where Remus and Thor could play. There was a pond on the other side of the woods that ducks and fish swam in. Thor loved the pond already. The lab loved to fetch sticks that Remus threw into the water. Across the stream that was on the other side of the house was a big manor house. It was white and it had expansive fields around it.

"Remus, I think it's time we meet our neighbors," John said once he'd completely unpacked the car. "I realize it's only been a day, but it's always nice to know who you live by."

Remus hesitated. Neighbors always seemed to know there was something wrong with him. Maybe it was the pallor of his skin or the scars on his arms. Maybe it was the look in his dad's eyes, the one that looked worried and sometimes, Remus thought, a bit guilty. Either way you put it, the neighbors almost always ignored them after the first meeting.

"Do we have to?" he asked. John smiled softly and knelt in front of his young son.

"They own the house we're living in, son," he said. "We only have to go over once to thank them, okay?"

"Okay, come on Thor!" Remus called. Thor came bounding over, barking madly. Remus and John laughed. Thor was such a hyper dog.

The walk to the manor was not as far as it looked. Within five minutes they had reached the front gate. It was thrown open in an inviting way. They took the gravel walk up to the front steps. There was a summer welcome mat on the porch. John rung the doorbell. Within minutes, a house-elf opened the door. John smiled.

"We're the new neighbors. Are your master and mistress home?" he asked kindly.

"Yes they are Sir, would you like to come in while I fetch them?" the house-elf asked in a squeaky voice.

"Why yes, we'd love to," John said. Remus looked at his dog. "Stay," he commanded. Thor sat on his haunches and blinked lazily. Remus smiled.

The house-elf opened the door and led them to a large sitting room with baby blue walls and soft looking white furniture.

"It'll only be a moment," the house-elf said. "Please make yourselves comfortable." And she left. Remus walked over to the far wall as his father sat down on the couch. The life-sized portrait was of a man in green-healers robes, but it wasn't moving. _How strange_ Remus thought. He looked at the soft smile the man had, one that would reassure any patient. He had hazel eyes behind a pair of regal glasses and a mess of black hair on his head.

"Ah, I see you like my self-portrait," a quiet voice said. Remus jumped. An elderly man had walked in. He was using a cane and he had on the same spectacles as the man in the portrait. He had hazel eyes and white hair in the same style as the man in the portrait. _Great, more old people_ Remus thought.

"Hello, I'm John Lupin. We just moved in next door," John said standing up and shaking the man's hand. The man smiled and sat down.

"Dan Potter," the man said. "It's a pleasure to meet you." He placed his cane on the floor at his feet. "So, you moved into the old Haunted Cottage, eh?"

"Haunted?" Remus squeaked. He ran to his father and clutched his leg. Haunted was never a good sign.

"Yes, Lawrence and Betty Haunted owned that cottage in 680 AD. It was quite the manor in its day," Dan said. Remus relaxed. So it wasn't haunted.

"Wow, impressive, I didn't realize it was that old," John said pleasantly, sitting back down. Remus sat beside him.

"Oh yes, it is a boat-load of history. That was the house Rowena Ravenclaw was born in," Dan said. Remus stared in awe.

"Really? The real Rowena Ravenclaw?" he asked. History fascinated Remus. He loved learning.

"Oh yes," Dan smiled kindly. "And who is this strapping young lad?"

"This is my son, Remus," John said.

"Well, by Jove, is he really? He is very inquisitive this one," Dan chuckled. Remus smiled shyly. He liked this man. He was very kind.

"He loves to learn about anything and everything," John laughed. "My history books and such are always disappearing."

"Well, he will do well in school. How old are you?" Dan asked.

"Nine," Remus answered shyly.

"Well, well, is that so? Come, my wife is in the kitchen. You should meet her. And my son is running around here somewhere," he muttered picking up his cane and leading them down the hall. The kitchen was huge. It was a bright red and there were cupboards all over. As if in there by accident, there was an oven and a refrigerator. An elderly woman with her long white hair pulled back in a ponytail was washing dishes with the house-elf.

"Aislyn, this is John Lupin and his son, Remus. They just moved into the Haunted Cottage," Dan said as he walked in and sat at the large dining table. Aislyn looked around and smiled.

"Why, hello. It's nice to know people still like to move to the country. I'm Aislyn Potter," John shook her hand as did Remus. He was surprised that she had such a firm handshake when she looked so frail.

"Would you like to stay for dinner? We don't usually have guests," Aislyn asked. John glanced at Remus who shifted uncomfortably.

"The least we can do is give you a free meal since you were kind enough to rent our little cottage," Dan said. "And I can tell you all about its history and how we came into possession of it."

Remus really wanted to know more about the house so he gave his dad a little smile. John smiled back.

"We'd love to," he replied.

"Oh good, I hope you like roast," Aislyn said sweetly.

"Yes, it's one of our favorites, isn't it, Remus?" John asked his son.

"Yes," Remus muttered. Aislyn smiled.

"Would you like to go upstairs and play with James? He hardly ever has anyone to play with."

"Could I?" Remus asked.

"Of course, he needs someone his own age to play with. Cookie, take him to James's room, would you?" Dan told the house-elf.

"Of course Master Potter, this way Master Lupin," Remus got up and followed the little elf up a grand staircase to the second floor. They went nearly all the way down to the end of the hallway before Cookie stopped at a door with a silver plague that read: James Daniel Potter. Cookie knocked.

"Master James, you has a visitor!" Cookie called through the door before trooping away. Remus just stood there. What was he supposed to do? Just before he could go into full blown panic, the door opened. A little boy with wild black hair, glasses, and hazel eyes was looking at him, almost an exact miniature of the portrait.

"Well, hello, who are you?" the boy asked. Remus cleared his throat nervously.

"Remus Lupin, I'm your new neighbor."

The boy's face lit up. "You mean, like here for a while? You won't be leaving?" he asked.

"Um, I don't know, we move around a lot…" the boy didn't even listen. He dragged Remus into his bedroom and started talking.

"I'm James Potter, of course, my parents probably already told you. I've been dying to have a friend that I can play with. All I ever get are my annoying cousins. Do you like board games? They're Muggle games I just love. Have you ever played a board game? My favorite is Clue. I love solving mysteries…"

Remus was totally overwhelmed. He had never heard someone talk so much without taking a breath. He couldn't get a word in edge-wise. Bewildered, he watched James pull down a box labeled Sorry.

"There aren't enough of us to play Clue, but this one is fun enough. Want to play?" James asked.

"Er, sure," Remus replied. What more could he say? James smiled and plopped down on his floor. It was littered with clothes and books, but he simply shoved them out of the way to make room. Remus sat down across from him. He wasn't sure if he liked this boy or not. He was not what Remus was used to.

"Okay, what color do you want?" There's…." James began.

"Red, I'm always red," Remus said before James could start explaining the game. James looked at him.

"You've played Sorry?" he asked.

"Of course, my mother taught me. She's a Muggle," Remus replied wanting to try and make this noisy boy speechless.

"Wow, that's cool. Well, then I guess we'll just play then," James said setting up the board. "So where are you from?"

"Oh, um, all over," Remus mumbled.

"You're awfully quiet, aren't you?" James asked. Remus shrugged.

"So, how come you know all about Muggles?" Remus asked changing the subject as they started the game.

"My mum loves Muggles," James said. "Muggle Studies was her favorite subject in school. She even lived like a Muggle for a couple years after she left school."

"Really?" Remus asked intrigued.

"Yeah, and she liked it so much that she almost never uses magic except for things she can't do by hand. My dad thinks she's crazy but he loves her anyway. What about you? You said your mum is a muggle. What's that like?"

"Oh, um, I don't really remember," Remus mumbled.

"What do you mean you don't remember? She's your mum!" James exclaimed. "Sorry," he said bumping Remus' piece back to home.

"I haven't seen her since I was six," Remus said. James blushed furiously.

"Geez, I'm sorry, I have such a big mouth," he said.

"It's okay, you didn't know," Remus said.

"If you don't mind me asking, where did she go? She isn't…" James trailed.

"She's not dead," Remus said. "She just sort of left. Dad never told me why."

"Oh, I'm sorry, it's none of my business," James said still very embarrassed.

"Really, it's fine," Remus said. "I'm not sad like I use to be. I just keep my fingers crossed that she'll come back."

"I hope she does," James said. "Mum's are the best."

Over an hour later, John and Dan came up to tell the boys it was time for dinner. They dropped their game pieces and followed their fathers downstairs. Dinner was amazing. There was roast turkey; mashed potatoes, warm rolls, cranberry sauce, and John had even made fruit salad.

"So tell me John, what do you do for a living?" Dan asked. John chewed slowly, buying his time. Remus glanced at his father.

"A little of this, a little of that, I can do pretty much anything," he answered. Dan nodded.

"Business man I presume?" he asked.

"You could say that," John replied vaguely. Dan and Aislyn exchanged a glance but said nothing. John noticed and hastily amended himself.

"Don't think I deal in the Black Market of Dark Magic, I just do many strange jobs. I used to work for a big jewelry company," John said.

"You don't now? How are you paying for this move?" Aislyn asked in a worried voice. John looked uncomfortable. He was using money that would have gone to Remus's medication.

"Er, I had enough to move out here. It's no big deal," John said carefully.

"If you ever need any help financially, just let us know. We have more than enough to go around," Dan offered. "And if rent is too much don't hesitate to let us know."

John looked mortified. "Really, it's fine, we've been better, but we've also seen worse, we'll be fine."

"Are you sure?" Aislyn asked. "Do you have a job right now?"

"Oh yes, I work at an apothecary," John said quickly. Remus glanced at his father. Why didn't he just tell them he was unemployed? They seemed understanding enough. "What do you do for a living?" John quickly changed the subject. The Potters still looked concerned but obliged him with an answer.

"I'm a healer in the Dai Llewellyn ward," Dan said. Remus choked on his steak. John looked at his son worriedly. Remus took a swig of his cider.

"Wrong pipe," he gasped trying to look a bit sheepish. 'Please go on."

"That sounds fascinating," John said still looking at Remus. "You must see a lot."

"More than most people can stomach but someone needs to help those poor souls so I did what I could. I must say the most interesting bite I saw was from a vampire. It's a myth that you become one if they bite you. At worst you get a horrid infection that leads to gangrene. Most people just lose a lot of blood. This person must have been allergic to the bacteria in their fangs because they were slowly going blind."

"I didn't know that could happen," John said genuinely interested.

"Me neither, got him fixed up pretty quick but it was bizarre," Dan said.

"Dan must you discuss this at the dinner table?" Aislyn said. "And in front of the children?"

"Of course not dear, why don't you tell him what you used to do?"

"Nothing fancy, I used to work with Muggles…"

Remus shut his eyes as the moonlight fell on him. His skin stung as if a thousand bees were stinging every inch of him. It was the fur. His bones were on fire and he could feel them changing, elongating. Everything burned. His eyes were watering. He let out a pained cry that slowly turned into a pain-filled howl. When he next opened his eyes, the world was in black and white. He sniffed the metal box. Silver. He howled again knowing he was trapped again by the silver box, unable to get to human flesh. He knew it was no use to bite and scratch the metal, it would make him sick. Instead, he resorted to the only thing he could do, tearing himself up.

John hated listening to his son during the full moon. He wished there was something he could do. His poor little boy needed him and he was useless. He couldn't keep a job to keep him sheltered and fed. He couldn't find a cure so that he would go back to the fun-loving, curious (and at times, mischievous) boy that he had been before the bite. He missed that Remus, the one that talked and wanted to learn. He wanted his son back. Therefore, he wasn't going to give up on him. He hoped that James would open Remus up a bit. It seemed to be working ever so slightly already.

He flinched as Remus let out a ferocious growl. He heard a thunk, and he flinched again. He would wait there all night until the moon went down. Then he would go in and patch his son up and give him his strengthening potion so he would heal faster. He always hated seeing his little boy after a full moon. The scratches had become deeper and nastier the older he got. It tore John's heart out to see his little boy suffer so.

When Remus woke up, he was in his new room. He groaned when he realized his back hurt terribly. He lay back down. Last night had been horrible. He hoped his new…friend…hadn't heard his cries of pain. That's all he needed, to lose the one friend he had before they really got to know each other. He looked around as his father entered carrying a tray of food and potions. He smiled.

"How are you feeling?" he asked. Remus had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. That was a dumb question. He wasn't feeling great, that was for sure.

"A bit sore…and hungry," he said. John smiled sympathetically as he uncorked a bottle of yellow liquid. Remus grimaced; Dittany. As much as it healed his injuries, it stung badly.

"I know, just drink it, you'll feel much better," John took a washcloth dipped it in the bottle. He took Remus's right arm and dabbed it on his wrist. Remus shut his eyes. It was over quickly. When he opened them again, the scratch on his wrist was gone. John repeated this on many of his minor scratches on his arms, legs, and face. When it came time to do his back, Remus bit his lip.

"Do we have to?" he asked as John helped him sit up.

"It won't heal if we don't," John said lifting Remus's shirt and taking it off carefully. Remus flinched violently. It was extremely sore.

"Sorry, okay, let's get this over with," He dipped the cloth back in the dittany and dabbed it gently on his son's back. Remus bit his lip and shut his eyes tight against the pain.

Someone knocked on the front door. Remus's eyes snapped open. What if it was James or his parents? He didn't want them to see him like this. John was thinking the same thing. He set the cloth on the bedside table and shut the door behind him before he went downstairs to see who was at the door. It was James.

"Hi Mr. Lupin, Dad's taking me to a Tornados game and we had an extra ticket so I was wondering if Remus could come. He mentioned that was his favorite team," James said excitedly. John felt his heart constrict. He knew Remus would want to go _badly_, but in his condition he wouldn't be able to.

"I'm sorry James, he would love to go, but he's ill right now. He'll have to go another time," John said sadly. James looked skeptical.

"He was fine yesterday when I came over to play," he said. John frowned. While he knew that Remus had been feeling ill the day before he had let Remus play with his friend. John just couldn't say no. Remus hardly ever got to play with kids his own age anymore.

"I know, but he got very sick last night, I'm sorry, but-"

"Did you say a Tornadoes game?" Remus was at the top of the staircase. John nearly snapped.

"Remus, you shouldn't be out of bed!" he shouted. Remus looked at his feet.

"Yes, I did, do you think you could come?" James asked. His eyes were dancing merrily. Remus glanced at his father. He may have looked pleasant, but when Remus looked at his eyes he could tell his father was furious.

"I…Dad, could we talk upstairs?" he asked.

"You're not going. You aren't well and you know it," John said firmly.

"Dad, _please_?" Remus pleaded.

James looked between the two in confusion. He really wanted his friend to be there otherwise it would be him, his dad and his obnoxious cousins.

"Mr. Lupin, you know my dad is Healer so if Remus doesn't look well he can take care of him. Please can he come? I want him to meet Savvy and Dave," He gazed innocently up at John. Remus immediately copied. John sighed. He was worried about his son's health. He was weak from the full moon, it made him susceptible to sickness and such.

"Your dad won't let him out of his sight?" John asked. James shook his head.

"The last time he let me out of his sight I was put in a halter," he said proudly. John and Remus exchanged a glance. Remus shrugged, James was quite eccentric.

"Ok, but the moment he seems ill, bring him home," John said against his better judgment. James grinned and cheered. Remus smiled broadly, but before he could jump up and hug his dad, John was talking to James again.

"I just need to give Remus a medical potion and then I'll come drop him off, okay?" he told James.

"Sure, see you later Remus!" James called before running off. John shut the door and looked at his son, his eyes full of concern.

"Remus, are you sure you want to go? You had a rough night," he said.

"Dad, I've never been to a Tornadoes game, not since before I could remember, please don't try and keep me here. I might never get the chance again," He looked and sounded so close to tears that John couldn't argue. He simply picked up his son and put him back in the bed to finish healing his back. Remus only flinched a bit wanting to prove he was well enough to go with his friend. John sighed. This was only the beginning of his son realizing he could be independent. John wasn't sure he was ready for that yet. His little boy had missed out on so much. What would they tell the Potters when Remus didn't go to school?

"Okay, all clear I think," John said handing Remus a clean shirt to change into. Remus took it gratefully.

"Okay, can we go now, Dad?" Remus asked expectantly. John tried to smile, but he was too worried. He had a bad feeling about this.

"Yes, let's grab your cloak and head over," he said reluctantly. Remus cheered and ran ahead of him. John had to admit, he hadn't seen Remus this full of energy after a full moon since before the bite. Maybe things would start looking up for once. He followed his son out of the house and down the path to the Potter's mansion. Remus had already knocked by the time John had caught up. Aislyn opened the door. She smiled sweetly.

"James! Remus is here!" she called. She moved out of the way to let them in. "They're all in here," she said leading them to the kitchen. James poked his head out and grinned.

"Hey, mate, all drugged up?" he asked. Aislyn glared at her son, but Remus cracked a grin.

"Yes, and if I pass out it's the meds fault," he said. James laughed and grabbed his friend's arm. He dragged Remus into the kitchen where four people were gathered putting suntan lotion on. Remus recognized Mr. Potter at once.

"John, this is my cousin, Eithne White," Aislyn said introducing the Lupin's to the other elderly woman. She looked up from the little girl she was putting lotion on and smiled.

"Ah, so you're John Lupin. I used to buy your jewelry. It was exquisite," Eithne said shaking John's hand.

"Er, thanks," John didn't want to be reminded of that job. Remus wondered if the Potter family liked having kids at an older age. She looked even older than James's mum with her heavy wrinkles, thinning white hair, and tiny stature.

"This is her granddaughter, Savannah. She's the boys' age," Aislyn said indicating the little girl. She had long black curls, brown eyes, and ivory skin. There was something distinctly suspicious about her though.

"And this is her grandson, David," The little boy Mr. Potter was lotioning down waved. "He's two years younger than them," Aislyn added. Remus looked at him. He was missing his canines and he had wild black hair like James and glasses taped in the middle.

"All done, does Remus need any?" Dan asked. John shook his head. Werewolves didn't sunburn. Dan nodded. "Anything I need to know?" he asked.

"Just keep an eye on him, he was ill last night," John said.

"Okay, he'll be fine, I promise, you go relax today," Dan patted John on the shoulder and then Disapparated with his sister-in-law and the kids. Aislyn turned to John.

"He'll be fine, you worry too much. Come on, I'll make you some lunch."

Remus stared around him in awe. He couldn't believe he was actually at a Tornadoes game. It was like a dream come true. Not only that, but he was there with a friend, not his father. He smiled at James. He was so enthralled with everything that he hardly noticed who he was with. Remus didn't care; James had invited him, _him_, of all people. He was probably the happiest kid in the world.

"Ah, Dan, it's good to see you! Top Box I see, head on up as far as you can go. Enjoy the game!" the ticket wizard said moving on to the next family. Dan led the group up to the very top of the stands where they were sitting.

"Hello minister, lovely evening, isn't it?" Dan said to a plump man in a brown cloak. He smiled.

"Dan, it's good to see you. How's that patient you were working with the other day? The one with his foot sticking out of his-"

"He's fine, he went home yesterday with all his body parts in the right places," Dan cut across the minister.

"Well, that's good, and who are these strapping young men and lovely ladies?" he asked.

"This is my cousin-in-law, Eithne. She lives in Ireland. These are her grandkids, Savannah and David. That there is my son James, and this is John Lupin's son, Remus," Dan introduced. The minister stared at Remus. He felt very uncomfortable all of a sudden. Could the minister possibly know…?

"He doesn't look very well, shouldn't he be in bed?" the minister asked in concern. Remus relaxed. No, there was no way he could know.

"He was ill last night, but he's fine now, you know how it is after you recover after sickness. It must have been the 24 hour flu. It's been going around lately," Dan explained. Remus nodded eagerly trying to steer the conversation away from him. It worked; soon Mr. Potter and the minister were talking in lowered voices about something that wouldn't interest a kid. Something about strange disappearances.

"When does the game start?" Remus asked James. James was about to answer when there was a scream from somewhere below. A jet of green light shot across the field and hit the referee in the face. He collapsed on the spot. People began to scramble all around the stands trying to escape as a group of figures cloaked in black entered the field attacking people at random. James peered over the edge.

"James, come on!" Dan yelled grabbing his son and Remus and heading for the exit. Eithne followed holding her own grandchildren. Dan ran out into the woods and dropped the boys to the ground.

"Don't go anywhere unless you see those cloaked people, understand? I'm going to go help evacuate."

James and Remus nodded. Eithne dropped off Savannah and David and then left to help too. David clung to his sister in terror. Savannah clutched her brother not knowing what else to do. She turned to James.

"What's going on?" she asked. James shook his head. For once he had nothing to say. Suddenly, some of the cloaked people appeared in front of them. Women and men screamed and bolted away. Several of the cloaked figures pursued them. One stayed behind. He wore a mask, but his stench was not hidden. Remus backed into James. He knew that smell…

"Well, well, at last I have found you little Lupin. Your daddy's done a good job of hiding you," he laughed. James stepped in front of Remus.

"Who are you?" he demanded. Remus grabbed his friend's arm in terror. He had no idea what he was staring in the face.

"That's none of your business. All I want is your little friend," he said, a hungry gleam in his eye. Remus took a step back. He was shaking and he knew James could feel him.

"He's not yours so leave him alone!" James shouted.

"Boy, get out of the way!" the man lifted a filthy hand ready to swipe him out of the way, but James raised his fist and punched him in the nose. The man toppled over howling in pain.

"Run!" James yelled grabbing Remus' hand. His cousins raced behind them. Remus could hear the man chasing after them. Then all of a sudden he didn't. He slowed to a stop. James looked at him incredulously. The man was laying face first in the mud, James' cousin Eithne running toward them.

"Are you okay?" she asked them.

"Yes, he didn't hurt us," James answered. Eithne nodded and moved to her own kids. James turned to Remus. "Did you know that man?" he asked. Remus couldn't lie, but he couldn't tell the truth either.

"No, not really," he settled for. James raised an eyebrow.

"I don't believe you," he said.

"James!" Remus sighed, secretly thanking Mr. Potter for his timing. He hugged his son tightly. "Let's go home," he said taking James' and Remus's hands and Disapparating. John was still in the kitchen talking to Aislyn.

"That was a quick game," Aislyn said.

"The Knights of Walpurgis showed up," Dan said angrily.

"What?!" Aislyn shouted jumping to her feet. She grabbed James face, examining him. "Are you okay sweetheart?"

"I'm fine, Mum," James said fighting to get out of her hands. John rushed over to Remus hugging him tightly.

"You okay, son?" he asked. Remus nodded. He was having a hard time holding back his tears. He didn't think he'd ever see that awful man again.

"Remus, what's wrong?' John asking looking him in the eye. Remus shook his head.

"A man spoke to us," James spoke up. "Well, to Remus really. I think he wanted to kidnap him."

"What are you talking about, James?" Dan demanded.

"This filthy man came over to us. He tried to take Remus so I punched him in the face. Then we ran while he was distracted."

"A filthy man?" John asked paling.

"James, you could have gotten hurt!" Aislyn said. "Maybe even killed, what were you thinking?"

"Remus, who was the man? What did he want?" John asked his son gently but urgently. Remus shook his head.

"I don't know his name," he said honestly. "I only met him once…when I went to work with you at the jewelry store."

He looked his dad in the eye trying to communicate without the Potters getting suspicious. His dad seemed to understand his face drawn. He stood up.

"Thank you for bringing my son back safe," he said. "We should go now."

"At least tell me who that man was so we can inform the Law Enforcement. He was trying to kidnap your son," Dan said reasonably.

"They can't do anything," John said firmly. "They've been after this man for years."

With that he steered Remus out of the room and out the house as quickly as possible.

Remus was furious. He sat on the windowsill of his bedroom watching his dad pack up the truck. The moment they had returned home he had locked Remus in his room and started packing their things. Dan Potter stopped by several times to try and persuade him to stay, telling him the attack hadn't actually been in the area. John would not be swayed and so Remus was getting ready to leave the one place he could call home since he was a child. He knew it was because his father was afraid to lose his son but Remus thought this was a bit extreme.

The doorknob jiggled a bit and then John walked in. He watched his son a moment before picking up his son's stuff and taking it outside. Remus ignored him. He thought it was unfair. He hadn't done anything wrong, and neither had the Potters. Remus got up and kicked the wall. This did nothing to alleviate his anger. It did nothing more than make his toe sting.

"Remus, we're going! Come on!" John called. Remus sighed, grabbed his rucksack and reluctantly went out to the truck. To his surprise, James was out there talking to his dad.

"Please sir; he's the only friend I've ever had! Please don't leave!" he was pleading.

"I'm sorry James, but it's not safe here. Don't worry, he'll write." He looked up and so did James. John took Remus's bag and flung it into the passenger seat of the pickup. Remus walked up to James.

"I guess this is good-bye." He murmured.

"No, not really," James said confidently. "We'll be going to school next year. We'll see each other then."

Remus felt his gut twist uncomfortably. Poor James was in for a shock come next September. He hoped James would be able to make new friends. He was too nice a boy to not have any friends at all.

"Yeah, sure," he said unenthusiastically.

"See you September first, mate," James said giving Remus a hug. Remus hadn't been expecting it, but accepted it nonetheless. Only his family had ever hugged him.

"Bye," Remus murmured.

"Bye, I hope you know you're my best friend, and you always will be," James whispered. That was the last thing Remus thought he would ever hear from another person. It felt nice to know he had a best friend.


	3. Chances Given

**Author's Note: I do not own Harry Potter, much to my disappointment. The Marauders are one of my favorite groups in the Harry Potter series so I just had to write about them. Remus is my favorite, so he will be the main point of view, but the others will have their time to shine (except possibly Peter mostly cuz I have no idea how to write him). Enjoy! Please review!**

Chapter 3:

Remus was lying in an open field soaking up the summer sun while his dog chased the geese around the pond. It was hot but Remus didn't want to move. It felt good. He didn't get to do this often because his dad had gotten even more overprotective if that was possible. He hated being locked up in his room all the time so he took every opportunity he could to stay outside.

His eleventh birthday had helped though. His father bought him a camera. Remus loved taking pictures. His dad had taught him how to make the pictures move the very first night after Remus had filled the roll with pictures of his presents, Thor, his father and the meager birthday decorations around the house. He then would take the stills of all the moving pictures and paint them on the canvas his father had given him for his tenth birthday.

Before he had flopped down in the grass, Remus had been taking scenic photos, his favorite kind. The park near his apartment was the perfect place for those kinds of pictures. He had taken several of his dog because Thor was being silly, but soon Remus had grown bored. He missed the Haunted Cottage. That would have been the perfect place for scenic photos. James could draw, they could have both done art from his pictures.

"What are you doing?" asked a familiar voice. Remus huffed and opened his eyes. A boy a little older than himself stood above him looking down condescendingly.

"What do you want Nick?" Remus grumbled. Nick was the neighborhood bully and he particularly disliked Remus. _If only he knew what he was picking fights with_Remus seethed. Of course, Remus wouldn't want to hurt him that way anyhow.

"Just thought I'd kick around the Loser of the Day. Looks likes it's you," Nick laughed. Remus rolled his eyes.

"Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" he asked angrily. He wasn't afraid of Nick. That was probably why he sported so many additional injuries.

"None of them are stupid enough to be outside when I am," Nick said.

"Yeah, because everyone magically knows when you're going to be out, I suppose your mummy made you put suntan lotion on and made sure you brought a bottle of water with you so you wouldn't get too hot or sunburned?" Remus asked innocently. Nick growled and lunged at Remus. With his reflexes being improved by his lycanthropy, Remus had no trouble dodging Nick. He face planted in the dirt.

"Ouch, that had to hurt," Remus taunted. Nick tried to get up but Remus was faster. "Thor, sick him!" he commanded. Thor barked and bounded over. He jumped on Nick and started wrestling him. Nick screamed. He hated dogs and Thor was no lap dog. Remus laughed loudly. Nick had had it coming ever since he had tried to stuff Remus in the garbage can. Stupid Muggle boy didn't know where Remus had disappeared to when he had jumped behind the bushes and vanished. He had searched the whole park while Remus had lunch at home.

"Come Thor, let's go home!" Remus called walking toward his street. Thor barked and followed his master his tail wagging happily. Remus laughed all the way home.

"You're such a good dog, Thor. Did you get to play with that big bully of a Muggle?" Remus praised his dog. When they got to his house he saw his father reading a letter on the front porch. His brow was pinched in concentration.

"Who's that from?" Remus asked when he sat in the chair beside him. Thor plopped down at his feet panting heavily.

"Professor Dumbledore," John replied distractedly. Remus's ears perked up. What could the Transfiguration teacher at Hogwarts want?

"What does he want?" Remus asked.

"He's…he's Headmaster now," John replied. Remus knew that wasn't why he had written. They would have found out in the newspaper.

"And…?" Remus persisted. John looked up to see his son's patient face. This was too good to be true. Should he even risk telling him? What if he changed his mind at the last minute and said Remus couldn't go? He was about to tell his son when a man approached the porch. Remus's jaw dropped.

"Good afternoon, John. It's good to see you again," Albus Dumbledore smiled. He then spotted Remus who seemed to have realized his jaw was still hanging loosely open. He shut quickly and blushed.

"This must be Remus," Dumbledore said pleasantly.

"Er, yes, he is," John stuttered. "Er, would you like to come in? Would you like any tea or other refreshment?" he asked standing up and shaking Dumbledore's hand.

"Why yes, tea sounds quite refreshing," Dumbledore said cheerfully.

"Great, let's head inside," John said opening the door for his guest. Dumbledore went inside followed by Remus and Thor. John took a deep breath and then followed. He went straight to the kitchen. Remus led Dumbledore to the sitting room where they both sat down on the couch.

"You have a lovely apartment," Dumbledore said.

"Er…thank you, Sir," Remus said shyly.

"Here you go," John said handing Dumbledore some tea.

"Thank you, John," He took a sip and set it down. "Now, onto business, as you both know, I have been made Headmaster as Professor Dippet has sadly passed away. I believe that every child should be given the chance at an education. That is why I am here of course. Remus is a very special case.

"There are many other children out there with lycanthropy who never get the chance to get a proper education. I am giving them all a chance, but so far, only you, John, have deigned to write to me asking if your son could attend Hogwarts."

Remus stared at his father in disbelief. Why hadn't he said anything? He had been constantly telling Remus he wouldn't be able to attend and here he was asking the Headmaster if his son could attend. Remus wanted hug him and yell at him all at once.

"In fact, I might not have come had I not had another request for him to be allowed to attend," Dumbledore continued.

"Pardon me, but another request?" John asked slightly stunned. Dumbledore nodded.

"Yes, seems an old neighbor of yours had grown fond of your son and thought he deserved the chance."

Remus thought hard. He couldn't think of a single neighbor that knew about his condition that didn't hate him. Who could have possibly put in a request for him? He glanced at his father hoping he would clarify. John's eyes had clouded over, emotion rendering him speechless.

"Furthermore, I think that Remus is the only one who has shown any interest in attending, so I am here to give him this," Dumbledore rummaged in his cloak pocket for a moment before pulling out a large parchment envelope. He handed it to Remus. Written in green ink on the front was:

_To Mr. Remus Lupin_

_Small Town home_

_Bedroom Two_

Tears filled his eyes. He never thought he would get to see this letter. It was almost too good to be true. He hoped he wouldn't be waking up any time soon because if this were a dream he would definitely cry. Remus ripped it open and read the word he never thought he would read.

_Congratulations Mr. Lupin,_

_You have been cordially accepted and invited to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry._

"I have already set up accommodations for your monthly transformations. Madam Pomfrey our school Medi-Witch will escort you out onto the grounds an hour or so before the moon rises. She will take you to a secret entrance under a Whomping Willow. There you will go on alone done the path to a silver enforced building on the outskirts of Hogsmeade. When the sun rises, Madam Pomfrey will help you back into the castle under an Invisibility Cloak and let you rest and heal in the Hospital Wing. Do you have any questions?" Dumbledore asked.

"This is…full proof, isn't it?" John asked. "I mean to say, none of the students will find out and Remus won't hurt anyone, right?"

"I can't say it's entirely full proof, but it is the best we have and I guarantee that at least the Whomping Willow and the Shack are full proof," Dumbledore said truthfully.

"I see…" John murmured. Remus could feel panic rising in his chest.

"_Please,_ Dad, it sounds safe to me. I promise I'll do everything Madam Pomfrey tells me to do and I won't leave the shack until she comes to get me. _Please_ Dad; say you'll let me go!" Remus pleaded. John looked at his son's pleading face. He knew he couldn't say no, but Remus had never left his side for so long before.

"I don't know…" John said uncomfortably. Remus's face fell. It broke John's heart to see him so upset.

"Dad, I promise I'll be good," His face lit up. "And I'll get to see James again! Please Dad; you know how much I liked James!"

John knew he was cornered. He had liked James to. He was a sweet boy. He sighed.

"Okay, we'll give it a try," Remus cheered and gave his Dad a bone-crushing hug.

"Thank you thank you thank you!" Remus said. "I promise I won't let you down!"

"You better because the first bad incident I hear about I'll bring you straight home, understand?" John asked. Remus sobered.

"Yes Father," he said.

"Good," John suddenly smiled. "Why don't we go down to Florean Fortesque's and celebrate?"

"Yeah!" Remus said. He looked down at his bare feet (he liked to feel the grass between his toes at the park). "Let me go get my shoes," he said rather sheepishly. He took off up the stairs. John laughed.

"That's my boy. He hates shoes."

"I cannot wait to see what he brings to Hogwarts. Until we meet again, John," Dumbledore said standing and shaking his hand.

"Thank you, Albus. This means so much to him," John said.

"I know…I know…" Dumbledore said.

"Hey, Dad," Remus said bouncing along Diagon Alley.

"What son?" John asked laughing at his son's glowing face.

"What do you get when you cross a manticore and a dragon?" he asked.

"I don't know, what do you get?"

"A Corgon!" Remus laughed. John laughed too.

"Clever, a male gorgon, did you make that up all by yourself?" John asked. Remus shook his head.

"James told it to me when we still lived in the Haunted Cottage. He likes to tell jokes."

"Ah, I see, okay, here we are. What kind of ice cream do you want?" John asked. Remus looked at the huge selection.

"Strawberry with chocolate fudge syrup," Remus finally decided. John laughed.

"You and chocolate strawberries."

"It's good!" Remus pouted playfully. A young man about seventeen appeared behind the counter.

"What can I get for you?" he asked.

"A Strawberry Delight with chocolate fudge syrup and a Cookies and Cream Sundae," John replied.

"That'll be eight Sickles," The young man said. John fished out his money and began counting it out.

"John!" John looked up. It was Dan Potter…and James.

"Remus!" James called happily. He ran over and hugged his friend. "I can't believe you're here right now! Dad kept telling me it was too early to go school shopping for most families and that you wouldn't be here, but I showed him, didn't I Dad?" he said in one breath.

"You haven't changed much," Remus laughed.

"Look at how tall you are," James said finally noticing that Remus was several inches taller than him. Remus shrugged.

"It's nothing really," he said.

"How are you John?" Dan asked shaking John's hand.

"Pretty good, how about yourself?" John asked still searching for two more Sickles.

"Here, I'll pay. Get two mint chocolate chips while you're at it Florean," Dan said passing over a couple of Sickles.

"You don't have to do that," John said quickly.

"Nonsense, you obviously need to save your money for school shopping," Dan said. John deflated slightly.

"Well, actually, I never thought about how I was going to pay for Remus's school things," John admitted.

"I can help; we have more than enough money to help you out," Dan said jovially. "Anything to help James' best friend," he winked.

"Here are your ice creams. Enjoy them before they melt," Florean said.

"Thanks, I probably won't see you again until after you graduate, so have a good term and study hard," Dan said passing Florean a tip.

"Thanks Dan," Florean said moving onto the next customer and her screaming daughter.

"I love that kid. He's got a good heart. His two best friends are Muggleborns," Dan said.

"Really? That's brave of him considering all the things going on," John said.

"What things?" James asked curiously.

"Nothing son," Dan said. "Yes, I met one of them, Ted Tonks is his name. He's a very bright young lad. Unfortunately, he seems to have fallen in love with a member of the Black Family."

"He better quit while he's ahead. I here they can get very nasty and they love revenge." John said. He suppressed the image of the Black girl that used to taunt his daughter.

Dan nodded. "Quite right, not all of them are bad though. Alphard Black is an acquaintance of mine. He donates a lot to my department at St. Mungo's. He's a nice enough bloke, though he always looks so sad. I imagine he mixed with what his family considers the 'wrong sort.'"

"Poor man," John said.

"Dad, can Remus and I go to Ollivander's?" James asked.

"Oh, yes, I suppose so; we'll just head to Flourish and Blotts and get your books. Don't leave each other alone though and if you see anything suspicious either come straight to us or hide, understand?"

"Yes Father," James said.

"All right, off you go," Dan said. James and Remus took off. John looked uncomfortable.

"Lighten up John, he's eleven now. He'll be okay," Dan said. John sighed.

"I know, I just can't help but be worried," he said. "He's all I've got left."

"You know, if you push him too much John, he won't want to come back," Dan said. "Let him breathe a little. The moon doesn't come up in broad daylight."

John froze in his tracks and dropped his ice cream. Dan sighed.

"Yes John, I know," he said. "I work in the Animal Bites. I've seen his records. He's a good kid though and I'm glad that he gets along with James. In case you haven't noticed John, Aislyn and I don't care. Who do you think put in the extra request for him to go to school?"

"So it was you?" John asked weakly. Dan smiled.

"Of course, I adore that boy of yours. Besides, James was never happier than when you lived in our cottage. Look, Aislyn and I have been hoping to come across you again. We were hoping we could convince you to come back and live in the Haunted Cottage free of charge. At least then you'd have a stable home and your son would have someone to play with."

John didn't know what to say. He'd never met a family so caring and selfless before. He quickly brushed away the tears that were trying to fall.

"I…thank you, Dan. I may just take you up on that offer," John said thickly. "After school starts though. That way we won't have to search for anything last minute. I know Remus will lose something."

"Great, I'll make sure the Cottage is ready for you. Now let's go shopping before the boys get too impatient."

"This place is kind of creepy, huh?" James said as he opened the door to Ollivander's.

"A little," Remus admitted.

"Good afternoon," a creepy voice said softly. The two boys jumped. An old man slipped out from behind the counter and looked over the two of them. "So, it is true that the Potter's had a child. Interesting…"

"I don't see what's so interesting about that. My Mum is an experimenter. She found out how to do that," James said proudly.

"Mr. Lupin, I didn't think I would be seeing you," Mr. Ollivander said. "I daresay I am pleased to see you are here."

"Why wouldn't Remus be here?" James asked. Mr. Ollivander ignored him. He went to his counter and picked up a measuring tape. "Mr. Potter, which is your wand arm?"

"Er…I guess my right," James replied disconcerted. Mr. Ollivander began to measure him. "Let's see what we've got," he said as he left the measuring tape to its business and went to search through his collection. "How about walnut, 18 inches, unicorn hair. Nice and springy."

He gave it to James but almost immediately took it back. "No, that won't do."

James looked at Remus incredulously. Then he noticed that the measuring tape had finished with him and was measuring Remus.

"How about mahogany, eleven inches, unicorn hair, pliable," Ollivander handed it to James. James felt a warmth in his hands. "Ah yes, bravo Mr. Potter that's the one. You will excel at Transfiguration!"

"Groovy!" James said in delight.

"Now for Mr. Lupin. Hmmm…..let's try a birch wood, ten and a quarter inches, flexible, dragon heartstring," he handed Remus the wand. Then he whipped it away from him. Remus felt like he had tried nearly every wand in the shop (okay so only like nine but still). His dad and James' dad had arrived before they came to the perfect one.

"Let's try, twelve and half inches, phoenix feather, nice and sturdy," he handed a pale wand to Remus. He felt the warm glow and grinned.

"Oh bravo, I've never seen a alder wand take so quickly. You must be a powerful wizard, Mr. Lupin," Remus blushed. Powerful? He didn't think so, but he wasn't about to contradict Mr. Ollivander. Dan paid Ollivander fourteen Galleons for the two wands and then they left.

"That was fascinating. I've never known anyone to be able to handle an alder wand. You should be very proud of your son, John," Dan said. John nodded.

"I don't understand is he going to be some all powerful wizard or something?" James asked.

"Goodness, no," Dan laughed. "He's going to be powerful, yes, but alder is a tricky wand to control and if Remus can control it, hardly anyone will be able to beat him in a duel or other combat."

"Okay, remind me never to pick a fight with you," James teased.

"I don't need a wand to win a fight," Remus said. "I usually use my dog."

The boys spent the rest of the day in Quality Quidditch supplies while their fathers finished the school shopping. There were several older kids there, most updating their supplies for the coming school year.

"I wish I could have a broomstick," James said staring hungrily at the new Cleansweep 5. "I'd love to be on the House team."

"I'll stay on the ground and cheer," Remus said.

"You don't want to play?" James asked incredulously.

"I'm not fond of heights," Remus explained picking up Beater's bat and weighing it in his hands.

All too soon their fathers were back. James tried begging his father for a broom but Dan firmly said no and dragged him out of the store. John and Remus stifled their laughter following the Potters.

"Well we need to head home. I already took all your stuff home. We're going over to the Potter's for dinner tomorrow so you'll be able to see James then," John said.

"Cool!" James cheered. "See you tomorrow Remus!"

"See you," Remus said as he and his dad walked to the alleyway for Apparators. When they got home, Remus immediately looked through all his new school books. _The Standard Book of Spells _looked fairly easy because his father had gone over most of the spells in there with him. Remus looked at the cover of _Magical Theory_ and tossed it aside to grab another book. _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_ caught his eye and he flipped through it. It was fascinating. Who knew there was so much you had to put into changing one thing into another! He skipped over the Potions books because he didn't care for Potions; all the ones he had ever drunk were disgusting. Remus loved _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them_. It was full of tons of amazing creatures and Newt Scamander wasn't biased in any way towards some like werewolves and vampires.

By far his favorite book was _A History of Magic_. He loved learning about all the magical history between goblins, and vampire wars and dragon hiding and so on. His father, knowing his love of history had also gotten him _Quidditch Through the Ages_ and _Hogwarts, A History_.

The next day, Remus could hardly sit still. He had placed his wand on his mantle where the sun would bounce off of it and give that corner of the room a pale red glow. His dad had told him that morning that they would be moving back to the Haunted Cottage. Remus was ecstatic. He had written James to see if he knew and they had been sending letters all day since then. Neither one could wait until dinner.

Remus was painting a portrait of Thor watching a squirrel in a tree when the doorbell rang. Remus hurried to the stairs wanting to get a peek at who it was. His father walked to the door and opened it. He dropped his lunch plate at the moment Remus gasped. It was his mother.


	4. Hogwarts

**Author's Note: I do not own Harry Potter, much to my disappointment. The Marauders are one of my favorite groups in the Harry Potter series so I just had to write about them. Remus is my favorite, so he will be the main point of view, but the others will have their time to shine. Enjoy! Please review! I don't have many reviews so let's change that!=]**

Chapter 4: Hogwarts

"What are you doing here, Emma?" John asked coldly. Remus hid behind the banister upstairs.

"I was in the neighborhood and I thought I would come see my son, if that's okay?" Emma said crossly.

"You lost all rights to see him when you walked out that door five years ago." John said still more coldly.

"Those papers never said anything about that." Emma said. "So therefore, I can see him." Emma snapped.

"What if he doesn't want to see you?" John asked.

"Let him tell me himself then." Emma said.

"Fine," Remus said coming out of hiding. "I'll tell you what I think. I think you're an awful mother. You were supposed to take care of me no matter what. You were supposed to love me and hold me when I needed you, but you didn't! You ran away! You didn't talk to us for four years, not to send child support, which you never sent! While Dad's been jumping from job to job trying to keep me safe, you've been off gallivanting the country doing who knows what when I _needed _you!" He was shouting now, but he knew she needed to hear this. "Dad still cries at night because you left. He still loves you, but you don't care, do you? You never stopped to think what your leaving did to him, to us! You're so selfish!

"But you know what, we've done perfectly fine without you and we can continue to do fine without you. So unless you came to apologize, I suggest you leave." Remus stared at his mother. Tears were streaming down her face. His father was staring at him in disbelief. Had his sweet, quiet Remus just said all that?

"Remus, I'm so sorry, never meant to hurt you, either of you, but I was scared. I didn't know what to do so I ran." Emma cried. "My parents were so awful to me that I had to leave. I was living in a tiny apartment by myself these past four years. I had no intension of coming back until I had seen you with another man." Emma looked at John. His eyes widened in shock.

"He was an older gentleman; he seemed to make you smile. I overheard you two talking about Remus and that's when it hit me. I was miserable because I missed. I made a huge mistake and I hope you can forgive me."

John looked at Remus helplessly. Remus shrugged and went back to his room. Once he was safely shut inside he sat on his bed and punched his pillow. He was angry. How dare his mother leave and then come back with some sorry sob story to try and win them back? She may be able to win his father back, but she was going to have to prove herself to Remus. If anything, her actions hurt him the most. He wouldn't forgive her unless she was truly sorry and she made up for all the lost time.

Remus would have stayed in his room the rest of the day, but something happened that cut his anger short. He felt magic; the same spells his father placed around the box that Remus transformed in. He knew something was wrong the moment he felt it. He heard footsteps running up the stairs and then his father burst in.

"Pack everything you can in your trunk. We need to get out of here." He said.

"What about Mum?" Remus asked half-heartedly as he packed al his clothes and art supplies into his already school laden trunk.

"That wasn't her. At a guess, she's already dead." John said. "I'm going to get my stuff, stay put."

Remus nodded and waited for his father to return. Thor was whining. He knew something was wrong but he didn't know what. John returned lighting fast, having shrunk his trunk and stored it in his pocket. He shrunk Remus's trunk and stuffed it into his pocket too. Then he grabbed Remus's hand and Thor's collar and Apparated.

They stumbled upon their landing just down the lane to Potter Manor. John regained his balance first and quickly helped Remus to his feet. Thor, never having Apparated before, tucked his tail between his legs and whimpered.

"Come on Thor," Remus said. Thor happily followed the two at their quickened pace as they rushed toward Potter Manor. James and Savannah were outside with Dan when they arrived. Dan stood to greet them.

"John, we weren't expecting you until much later…are you okay?" he had noticed John's pale face. "What happened?"

"Death Eaters, I don't know what they want from me, but they found my ex-wife." John said shakily. Dan helped him sit down. "They killed her…"

"James, go get my medical bag, will you? And your mother." Dan ordered.

"On it," James said taking of in to the house.

"Don't worry; you two are safe out here. We have the best protection anyone could ask for." Dan said. Remus didn't say anything. Savannah was looking at him curiously, but he avoided her stare. He still wasn't sure if he liked her. Thor padded up to John and nosed his hand trying to comfort his distraught master. John stroked him unthinkingly.

"That's why we move so often…" John mumbled. "Death Eaters have been pursuing me ever since…I don't know what they want from me…"

Remus looked away from his feet to stare at his father. Death Eaters had been following them? That's why they always left?

"Are you telling me none of the landlords ever found out? None of your bosses ever fired you?" Remus asked. John shook his head. Dan turned to his niece.

"Go inside Savannah and set up two rooms for John and Remus, will you?" Savannah nodded and went inside. Just then James and Aislyn appeared.

"Oh dear, what happened?" Aislyn asked taking in John's ashen face and Remus's angry one.

"Death Eaters, John just needs a shock tonic is all." Dan said looking through his bag that James brought.

"So tell me, _Dad_, how many jobs have you really had?" Remus asked heatedly.

"Just two, the jeweler and at the apothecary." John said. "Agatha knows and she thinks it unfair for me to have to support you alone so she gives me free medication and higher pay than her other employees. I lied to you because I didn't want you to know there were Death Eaters following us."

Remus felt his anger dissipate as fast as it had come. He hugged his father finally understanding why he kept Remus locked up.

"They won't find us here Dad," he whispered. "We're safe."

It was tough at first for both John and Remus to accept the fact that Emma might be dead. John tried several times to contact her family, but after their owl came back a cracked wing, he decided not to try. Remus stayed in his room a lot and only came out when James came over. Even Savannah wanted to make him feel better. Soon it was September first. Remus woke up at the crack of dawn, too happy to sleep any longer. When his father finally woke up at a quarter to nine, Remus came downstairs and they ate some cereal.

"I'm going to miss the Cottage." Remus said.

"You don't have to go," John tried yet again.

"I'm going Dad. I'll be a lot safer at Hogwarts than here anyway. We've been over this a hundred times already." Remus said in exasperation. John sighed.

"I know, I won't stop, you know that, but I'm going to miss you terribly."

"I'll be back for Christmas and Easter and I'll write every day." Remus said. "I'll even send pictures with my letters."

John smiled. "Let's get going then."

The Platform was already full of people by the time they got there. They were jostled to and fro as they fought to get to the train. John helped Remus load his trunk into the luggage compartments and then hugged him tightly.

"Have fun and be careful." John whispered.

"I will Dad," Remus said. "I love you."

"I love you too." John let go and watched as Remus got onto the train. The whistle blew and started off. Remus waved until he could no longer see his father anymore. He sighed and then went to find James. He was a little way down the compartment when a little redhead girl stormed out of a compartment ahead of him. A boy with long black hair followed closely behind. Perturbed, Remus came closer. In the compartment was James and another boy with shiny locks of black hair. Remus scowled. He knew who he was. He was a Black and he wasn't going to sit with a Black.

Hoping that James didn't see him, Remus followed the girl and boy. He found halfway down the train. Taking a deep breath, he opened the compartment door. The two looked up.

"Hi," Remus said shyly. "Er…can I sit with you?"

The girl smiled. "Sure, I'm Lily Evans. What's your name?"

"I'm Remus Lupin." Remus said sitting across from her and the boy.

"Lupin? Does your dad work at the apothecary?" the boy asked. Remus nodded.

"He's awful ay identifying potion ingredients. Why does he work there?" the boy asked.

"Severus, that isn't very nice." Lily scolded.

"It's okay, my dad is friends with the owner. He's horrible with potions, but he needs the money." Remus said. Severus raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything.

"I saw you walk out of that other compartment." Remus said. "What happened?"

"Those two boys in there thought that it was silly for Severus to want to be in Slytherin." Lily said.

"You want to be in Slytherin?" Remus asked intrigued.

"Got a problem with that?" Severus asked. Remus frowned.

"No, my…cousin…was in Slytherin." Remus said. He didn't feel like sharing that he had once had a sister.

"Was, have they already graduated?" Severus asked. Remus nodded.

"Are you a pureblood?" Lily asked. Remus shook his head.

"I'm a half-blood. Why do you ask?"

"They all seem to be jerks…purebloods I mean." Lily replied. "Or maybe it's just Black and Potter."

Remus felt torn. He loved James, but he knew he could be a lot to handle. On the other hand, he had no sympathy for Black.

"I'm not going to agree with you about James, he's my friend, but Black is definitely a jerk." He offered.

"You're friends with Potter?" Severus asked.

"Yes, is that a bad thing?" Remus defended his friend.

"I guess not, but I don't like him." Severus pouted.

"**So you're a Black, huh?" James asked. Sirius nodded. **

** "I'm not like the rest of them though. At least, I don't like to think I am." **

** "Interesting…I wonder where Remus is?" James said. **

** "Who's Remus?" Sirius asked. **

** "He's my friend and my next door neighbor." James explained. "He's really nice. Kind of shy and doesn't talk much, but he's an amazing artist." **

** "That's cool…I wonder where he is? Did you plan to meet him here?" Sirius asked. **

** "Yeah, but maybe he got caught up, met some other kids he knows or something. Or maybe my cousin found him." James said making a face. "Poor Remus…" **

** "There you are!" An older girl, a very pretty older girl opened their compartment door. Sirius jumped up and smiled. **

** "Annie!" he hugged her. **

** "I was wondering where you'd disappeared to." Annie said.**

** "This is my cousin, Andromeda. She's the coolest one. She ran away from home last summer to go live her boyfriend." **

** "Fiancé, actually." Andromeda corrected. **

** "Really, that's awesome, congrats!" Sirius hugged her again. "When are you getting hitched?" **

** "After school let's out." Andromeda said. "Don't tell anyone though, I really don't want people talking about it." **

** "Okay, no problem. Mum's the word." Sirius said. **

** "So, who's your friend?" Andromeda asked. **

** "James Potter," James said with a flourish. Andromeda laughed. **

** "He's a keeper." **

** "Why thank you," James said in a fake deep voice. Andromeda laughed again. **

** "I'll have to be careful or I may leave Ted for you." She said with a wink. "Speaking of which, I have to go back ton our compartment before he's subjected to watching our best friends suck face. See you, good luck at the Sorting!" **

** "Thank!" the two boys called after her as she left. **

** "I like her," James said grinning and slouching back in his seat. Sirius didn't respond. James sat up. "Aw, come on Sirius, if you don't want to be in Slytherin, the Hat won't put you in Slytherin! The Hat wanted to put my mum in Ravenclaw but she said she wanted to be in Gryffindor, so that's where he put her!" **

** "Really?" Sirius asked. **

** "Really." **

When the train finally arrived at Hogsmeade station, it had started sprinkling lightly. Prefects pointed all the students in the right way, the Head Boy and Girl gave directions to the Prefects and a giant of a man called all the first years to him. Remus climbed off the train with Severus and Lily Evans. They had all changed in to their black school robes.

"Firs' years this way! Firs' years!" the giant called.

"Whoa…" a voice said behind them. Remus turned around. It was a round-faced boy with ears that stuck out a bit too far. "He's huge!"

"Follow me firs' years!" the giant called stomping off into the dark. All of the first years followed him. Remus tried to locate James, but it was too dark to see much of anything. The round faced-boy tripped and Remus caught his arm.

"Thanks," he said.

"No problem," Remus replied.

"Yeh'll get to see yer first look at Hogwarts jus' around this bend." The giant called. There was a chorus of oos and ahhs. Remus had never seen something so majestic. He loved the castle already.

"No more n'four to a boat." The giant said. Remus looked down and saw small boats floating on a huge lake. He got into a boat with Severus, Lily and the round-faced boy. Then the giant called "Forward ho!" and they were off.

"Hello," Lily said to the boy. "I'm Lily Evans."

Remus had to hand it to her. She was a very friendly people person.

"I'm Frank Longbottom." The round-faced boy said.

"I'm Remus Lupin," Remus said, "and this is Severus," he added as an after thought.

"Nice to meet all of you." Frank said. "Are you guys nervous?" he asked. Remus and Lily nodded. Severus didn't respond. He was gripping the edge of the boat with his eyes closed, his knees pulled up to his chest.

"Sev doesn't like water. He can't swim." Lily explained.

"It's not hard, I can teach you." Remus offered. Severus shook his head. Lily looked at Remus and mouthed "I'll explain later." Remus nodded.

"Ever'body duck." The giant called as the boats slid under a rock. There was a thud and a splash as someone didn't heed.

"James!" someone called. Remus stifled a laugh. Figures it was James. He was probably talking too much to pay attention.

"Everyone out, I'll fetch the overboard." The giant said. He stumped down to the lake and wades in a bit until he pulled a sodden lump out of the water. He dropped James on the ground where he sputtered a bit. The giant came back to the front of the group and led them to the entrance hall. A stern looking witch was there to greet them.

"The firs' years Professor McGonagall." The giant said.

"Thank you Hagrid." Professor McGonagall said. "First years, this way please."

The first years followed Professor McGonagall leaving Hagrid behind. She led them into the massive entrance hall. To one side was a magnificent marble staircase and to the other was a hallway. In front of them were large oak doors from which the rest of the school could be heard chatting. Professor McGonagall led them to the left down the hallway and opened the first door on the left of that hallway. It was a small room, much like a large broom closet.

"You will wait here while the rest of the school settles down for the Sorting. I suggest you smarten yourselves up." With that she left. Remus gulped. He was really nervous now. Why did they need to smarten up? Neither his father nor his sister had told him how they got Sorted. They said it was part of the fun, not knowing. Some fun, he was just hoping he wouldn't pass out.

"There you are, where have you been?" James said grabbing Remus' arm.

"Oh, I was sitting somewhere else…er…I couldn't find you." Remus said.

"Really? I was sitting up front where I was to miss." James said. Remus laughed lightly.

"I got on toward the middle, maybe that's why I missed you." James laughed too.

"Maybe, so are you excited?" James asked.

"More nervous than anything," Remus admitted.

"Come along," Professor McGonagall had returned. The first years nervously followed her to the oak double doors. They were now flung open wide revealing the large Great hall. The first years were overwhelmed. Remus wished he had about four more eyes. There were four long tables each draped in the House colors (red and gold for Gryffindor, blue and bronze for Ravenclaw, black yellow for Hufflepuff and green and silver for Slytherin.) The high table where all the teachers sat boasted all the colors. The ceiling was by far the best sight in there. It mimicked the sky outside so that there appeared to be no ceiling at all. Remus knew it was a difficult enchantment, for he had read about it in _Hogwarts, A History_.

McGonagall stopped in front of a stool at the end of the tables in the middle of the Hall. On top sat a ratty old wizard's hat brown with age. Everyone was staring at it so Remus figured it was more than it seemed. Indeed, it looked as if the hat had suddenly come to life. I wide tear in the bottom opened up and it burst into song.

_In days of old, when I was new,  
And __Hogwarts__ just began,  
The founders of our noble school  
thought they would always stand.  
United by a common goal,  
they sought to teach  
To make the world's best magic school  
And pass along their talents each  
"Together we will remain  
The four good friends decided.  
And never did they dream that they  
Might some day be divided.  
For were there such friends anywhere  
As __Slytherin__ and __Gryffindor__?  
Unless it was the second pair  
Of __Hufflepuff__ and __Ravenclaw__,  
So how could it have gone so wrong?  
How could such friendships fail?  
Why, I was there, so I can tell  
The whole sad, sorry tale.  
Said __Slytherin__, "We'll teach just those  
Whose ancestry's purest."  
Said __Ravenclaw__, "We'll teach those whose  
Intelligence is surest"  
Said __Gryffindor__, "We'll teach all those  
With brave deeds to their name."  
Said __Hufflepuff__, "I'll teach the lot  
And treat them just the same."  
These differences caused little strife  
When first they came to light.  
For each of the four founders had  
A house in which they might  
Take only those they wanted, so,  
For instance, __Slytherin__  
Took only pure-blood wizards  
Of great cunning just like him.  
And only those of sharpest mind  
Were taught by __Ravenclaw__  
While the bravest and the boldest  
Went to daring __Gryffindor__.  
Good __Hufflepuff__, she took the rest  
and taught them all she knew,  
Thus, the __Houses__ and their founders  
Maintained friendships firm and true._

So _Hogwarts__ worked in harmony  
for several happy years,  
but then discord crept among us  
feeding on our faults and fears._

The _Houses__ that, like pillars four  
had once held up our school  
now turned upon each other and  
divided, sought to rule.  
And for a while it seemed the school  
must meet an early end.  
What with dueling and with fighting  
and the clash of friend on friend.  
And at last there came a morning  
when old __Slytherin__ departed  
and though the fighting then died out  
he left us quite downhearted.  
And never since the founders four  
were whittled down to three  
have the __Houses__ been united  
as they once were meant to be._

And now the Sorting Hat is here  
and you all know the score:  
I sort you into _Houses__  
because that is what I'm for.  
But this year I'll go further,  
listen closely to my song:  
though condemned I am to split you  
still I worry that it's wrong,  
though I must fulfill my duty  
and must quarter every year  
still I wonder whether sorting  
may not bring the end I fear.  
Oh, know the perils, read the signs,  
the warning history shows,  
for our __Hogwarts__ is in danger  
from external, deadly foes  
and we must unite inside her  
or we'll crumble from within  
I have told you, I have warned you...  
let the Sorting now begin._

There was a spattering of applause as the Sorting Hat finished. James and Remus exchanged a glance. Both had a vague idea of what the Hat had meant. Professor McGonagall pulled out a long roll of parchment and waited for the noise to die down.

"You will come forward and place the Sorting Hat on your head when your name is called." McGonagall said. She unrolled the parchment and cleared her throat.

"Abbott, Hugh!" A boy with dirty blonde hair that covered his eyes stepped forward and put the Hat on. It waited just a moment before the Hat shouted "Hufflepuff!" There was a loud applause the from yellow clad table.

"Avery, Nathan!" An unpleasant looking boy stepped forward.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Black, Sirius!" Remus frowned as the handsome boy who had been sitting with James went forward. He walked like an aristocrat and it annoyed Remus. The Hat slipped over Sirius's head. Sirius was trying to stay calm, but he was worried the Hat would put him into House he didn't want to go into.

"Another Black, you people breed like rabbits. But what have we got here? A thirst to prove you are different from your family, eh? You don't want to go to Slytherin and be the same. Hmmm…interesting…very brave…GRYFFINDOR!"

Sirius stared at the inside of the Hat. Gryffindor? His mother was going to kill him…

Remus stared in disbelief. A Black in Gryffindor? That was unheard of. It was almost criminal in their family. He watched Sirius take the Hat off, place on the stool and bound over to the Gryffindor table. Sirius was grinning madly.

Sirius didn't seem to know Remus was watching him, but he caught sight of Andromeda sitting with her best friend at the Slytherin table and waved. She grinned and sent him a thumb's up. Further down the table he saw Narcissa's sour face. She would be the one who told the family of his disgrace. She was a selfish snob anyway…

"Evans, Lily!" Lily stepped forward on trembling legs. She sat down on the stool and the hat slipped over her head.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

"Argh, that means we'll be in the same House," James pouted.

"You think you'll be put in Gryffindor?" Remus asked.

"My whole family has been in Gryffindor for ages." James said. "I ought to be, don't want to break tradition. Then again, I won't be tormented like Sirius will."

"Serves him right," Remus said. James looked at his friend curiously.

"Do you even know him?" he asked.

"No, but I know his cousin…she did some awful things to my family. They're all the same. I don't trust him." Remus said. James had never heard Remus talk even remotely of his past. Maybe he would finally start opening up…

"Lestrange, Rodolphus!"

"Bet he's in Slytherin, his father's been causing a lot of problems for the Ministry I hear." James whispered.

"SLYTHERIN!"

"Longbottom, Frank!" Frank tripped on his way up. He had been running, so frightened of not being picked. He picked himself up as several students tittered and slammed the hat on his head. It was a long moment before the Hat shouted:

"GRYFFINDOR!"

Happy to be picked, Frank rushed down to the Gryffindor table. Several students laughed outright as he realized he was still wearing the Hat. He sheepishly went back and handed McGonagall the hat and went back to his seat so red in the face you could have fried an egg on his cheek.

"He'll be a fun roommate," James chuckled.

Lovegood, Xenophilius!" Several people snickered. An odd looking boy with long blonde hair and a lazy eye walked forward…it was more a strut, really.

"RAFENCLAW!" Remus laughed at the looks on the Ravenclaws faces at this revalation.

"Lupin, Remus!" Remus stopped laughing and gulped. He took shaky step after shaky step to the front until he sat down on the stool. The Hat was placed on his head and it slid down to cover his eyes. He felt the Hat come to life.

"Difficult…very difficult…we have a very talented group of students this year. Hmmm…now where should I put you…you're very ambitious like your sister…you would do well in Slytherin…"

_Absolutely not,_ Remus thought viciously. _They are the reason she's dead_.

"Slytherin is out then…hmmm…you are exceptionally intelligent, you would go far in Ravenclaw…but what's this? A werewolf?"

Remus felt swear break out on his face. _It doesn't matter what I am, just who I am_. He thought wildly, his father's comforting words floating into remembrance. The Hat chuckled.

"I know where to put you then…GRYFFINDOR!"

Remus sighed in relief. He really hadn't cared what House he got into, except for Slytherin, he just didn't want the Hat to try and kick him out (could it do that?). James gave him a thumb's up as he went to join the red clad table. Lily patted him on the back as he joined her. He noticed Black staring at him with look of deep dislike.

"MacDonald, Mary!"

A girl with curly brown hair walked up to the front more confidently than any of the other student. She sat tall on the stool and the Hat promptly shouted "GRYFFINDPR!" Mary flounced down and sat on Remus' other side.

"Hello, my name is Mary. You looked pretty terrified up there, did the Hat tell you to go to Hufflepuff or something?"

"Er…" Remus said.

"It's okay, the Hat makes mistakes too." Mary said. She turned as "Marks, Alice!" was called forward. She was a shy looking girl with blonde curls and bright blue eyes. She was the smallest girl Remus had ever seen. No sooner had she sat down then the Hat nearly engulfed her.

"GRYFFINDOR!" Alice hurried over to the red table and sat beside Frank and Sirius. Remus wished James had a last name higher up in the alphabet. It was talking way to long. He heard Sirius's stomach growl several times. Remus had lost track of who had been Sorted, but he sat bolt upright when "Patil, Richard!" was called.

Funny, Remus had expected him to look different, yet he didn't. Ricky was still a bit scrawny, still rather small and had the same hair as he did five years ago. The only difference was that his skin had finally darkened to his dad's tone so that he finally looked Indian and he wore glasses. Richard sat on the stool and almost immediately the Hat Sorted him into Ravenclaw. Remus clapped politely until Richard caught his eye. Remus didn't like the look Richard gave him. Did Dumbledore know Richard knew about Remus's lycanthropy? He quickly looked to the front. Dumbledore nodded then put a finger to his lips. Remus sighed and nodded. He had made sure Richard wouldn't tell. He was more comfortable now.

When he looked back to the front, a pudgy boy was being Sorted. He seemed to take a long time. Finally the Hat shouted "GRYFFINDOR!" The pudgy boy took off to the Gryffindor table and sat down across from Sirius. He was shaking still.

"Potter, James!" Remus forgot all about the pudgy boy and turned back to see the Hat slide over James' head.

"GRYFFINDOR!" Remus cheered along with the rest of Gryffindor. James came down smiling proudly. He sat beside Sirius since he couldn't sit next to Remus.

"Well done, mate," Sirius said high-fiving James. Remus couldn't help but feel a bit jealous. The rest of the Sorting went relatively quickly. Severus was Sorted into Slytherin, much to Lily's disappointment (Remus wasn't sure he actually liked him). Then, the last person came forward, which happened to be Savannah. She too was Sorted into Gryffindor.

When the applause had died down and McGonagall had taken the stool and the Sorting Hat out of the Great Hall, Professor Dumbledore stood. The Hall quieted immediately.

"Welcome to Hogwarts! I'm sure we are all looking forward to a great year and a great meal! So dig in!"

Food magically appeared on all the platters on the tables. Remus was starving so he took a little of everything he could reach. He'd never been able to eat as much as he wanted unless he was at the Potter's.

"Hungry much?" Frank asked.

"Starving," Remus said dumping a boat load of mashed potatoes onto his plate. James just laughed.

"He always eats like this. You would think his father was starving him to death."

Remus didn't remark as his mouth was full of potatoes.


End file.
